Facing deportation, rapper 21 Savage vows fight to stay in US

NEW YORK (AFP) – 21 Savage’s lawyer confirmed on Monday (Feb 4) that the Grammy-nominated rapper had overstayed his visa as a child, but vowed he would fight for his right to remain in the United States after his arrest by immigration agents. The 26-year old chart-topper – real name Sha Yaa Bin Abraham-Joseph – was detained in the southern city of Atlanta on Sunday by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE), which says he is a British citizen. “As a minor, his family overstayed their work visas, and he, like almost two million other children, was left without legal status through no fault of his own,” the rapper’s attorney Charles Kuck said in a statement. “The continued detention of Mr. Abraham-Joseph serves no other purpose than to unnecessarily punish him and try to intimidate him into giving up his right to fight to remain in the United States.” Kuck said his client has a pending application for a U visa, which is for victims of crimes who have faced mental or physical abuse in the United States. “Mr Abraham-Joseph has never hid his immigration status from the US government,” Kuck said. “The Department of Homeland Security has known his address and his history since his filing for the U Visa in 2017, yet they took no action against him until this past weekend.” 21 Savage has long said he is a local act from Atlanta, the state capital of Georgia, which is considered the home of hip… [Read full story]